Sow There!

I’ve had a bit of traction on writing about household pets. Tiggy, the wonder kitty, recently hunted down a mole. We don’t have pets currently, but other people’s pets for some reason are strangely attracted to Tommy.
My birthday is coming up on Monday and Tommy is busy phoning everyone in my personal address book and inviting them to a picnic in the park this weekend. As usual, he has specifically said no presents will be allowed. However, this year I’m changing my mind on that.
This year my goal is to gather $500 in donations for the Butte Humane Society “Mutters Day Stroll.”
If everyone who reads the column sends in $5, I should have at least $15 by May 13. Then I’ll just have to rely on my friends and family for the other $485.

Arf, arf
Speaking of pets, including “man’s best friend,” I tracked down a Web site called dogsinthenews.com.
It has articles about the biggest and smallest dogs in the world. Another article claims a dog saved a woman by performing the Heimlich maneuver. One story talked about a German Shepherd/Husky mix who saved a 2-year-old baby by snuggling it. The tyke had wandered away from home wearing just a T-shirt in freezing conditions.
Other headlines include “Pit bull saves two women from cobra, dies wagging his tail.”
There’s also Belle, the English beagle who was trained to bite the number nine on a cell phone to save his owner who was having a seizure. You know who that guy’s best friend is.
The site also has a poll of readers who determined that two-thirds of dog owners who visited the site let their dogs sleep on the bed.

Enjoy it while you can
Our garden is pretty much at its prime right now. To enjoy it while I’m at work, I’ve been bringing myself bouquets and placing them at my desk.
Tommy spent his day off plucking pretty much all of the remaining Velcro weed (which flowered early this year) and mowing and edging the lawn.
I must say, there is nothing sexier in a man than arriving home to see the yard looking beautiful and a happy smile on your shirtless, sweaty guy.
Alas, we already know the grandeur is not going to last. While putzing around, Tommy found a fresh gopher hole. He ran the hose in there for about 45 minutes and it never overflowed. That gopher must have a system of tunnels that stretches from north Chico to Durham.
A reader named Roxie sent a sweet card with a purple bookmark gift enclosed. Her note said to try putting a stick of Juicy Fruit gum in the hole. Supposedly this causes the gopher to get blocked up and die. However, the UC Davis integrated pest management Web site debunks this.
But, you know what, there might be something more to the gum theory. Two years ago I actually did this, but with Big Red gum, and darn if the gopher didn’t go away.
The other reason to enjoy the garden right now is that in about two days it is going to be blistering hot, forewarning us about the terrible things our bodies and plants will go through this summer. In Chico heat it’s difficult to motivate oneself to be diligent about giving plants the water they need. That’s because it’s so difficult to pry oneself out of the wading pool.

Ooh, la la
Sunday is the League of Women Voters’ 34th annual wine tasting party and light buffet. Hooray! Tommy isn’t a big wine drinker, but it will be fun to get a little gussied up and snack on various cheeses and schmooze with big-wigs. The event is at the Lakeside Pavilion at California Park from 4-7. I won’t be wearing my hat, so big-time fans who want to circle around me like groupies likely won’t be able to recognize me. But if you do, stop by and say hello.
Tickets are $25 in advance and can be purchased at Vino 100 in the Safeway Shopping Center on Mangrove in Chico or from any League member. The price bumps up $5 if you wait to buy them at the door.

Cluck, cluck
My friend, whose name will not be disclosed, is thinking about getting some chickens in her backyard.
When I was a young girl, my Auntie Jeanne had a chicken coop and I used to pretend I was Laura Ingalls and go out and fetch the fresh eggs.
Alas, my friend had heard that because she lives in the city limits, chickens weren’t allowed.
I called the municipal code department and found out that chickens are allowed under certain circumstances.
First off, roosters are NOT allowed. We can understand that as they are the equivalent of the animal version of leaf blowers.
The nice guy from the city said my friend would need a permit from the city. Also, there are rules about how close the chicken cage can be to her main structure. The rules vary depending on the zoning.
Also, each animal needs 250 square feet of space, so if you have a big yard, you could have a nice little flock.

Shameless plug
I’ve posted a few pictures of my happy little garden on my blog. Note that the pile of junk in the background belongs to my neighbor Curious George, who is in construction and collects odd things.